Toothbrush holder



y 1949- G. J. ROZZl ET AL 2,471,979

'IOOTHBRUSH HOLDER Filed Oct. 20, 1947 INVENTORS 60/00 J ROZZ/ E RNEST L. BOIVALANZA fay-2&9

THE/R ATTORNEYS Patented May 31, 1949 TOOTHBRUSH HOLDER Guido J. lltozzi and Ernest L. Bonalanza, South San Francisco, Calif.

Application October 20, 1947, Serial No. 780,990

4 Claims.

Our invention relates to a fixture for holdin brushes or the like, and more particularly to a holder for tooth brushes.

Among the objects of our invention are:

(1) To provide a novel and improved holder for brushes or the like;

(2) To provide a novel and improved holder for tooth brushes:

(3) To provide a novel and improved holder for tooth brushes, which shall protect such brushes from dust or the like;

(4) To provide a novel and improved tooth brush holder capable of holding a plurality of tooth brushes isolated from one another;

(5) To provide a novel and improved sanitary tooth brush holder;

(6) To provide a novel and improved compartmentized holder for tooth brushes, in which the individual compartments automatically close upon insertion of a tooth brush therein.

Additional objects of our invention will be brought out in the following description of a preferred embodiment of the same, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein- Figure 1 is a threedimensional view of our invention in its preferred form;

Figure 2 is a view in section, taken in a horizontal plane through the embodiment of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view in section, transverse of a compartment of the embodiment of Figure 1, with a tooth brush held in position therein;

Figure 4 is a similar view with the brush in the act of being removed.

In its preferred embodiment as illustrated in the drawings, our tooth brush holder involves an open-faced container 5 formed of a top wall 3, a bottom wall 5 and end walls 1 and 9, preferably joined by a rear wall 6 l.

Adjacent their front edges, the top and bottom walls are provided with vertically aligned sockets into which are pivotally secured doorpartition units, each of which includes a door I5 and a partition ll disposed substantially at right angles thereto with pivots I 9 located at the upper and lower ends of the junction of the partition with the door. With the door of such a unit in its closed position, its associated partition will occupy a front to rear position where it may function as a partition in the container.

Two such partitions thus define a chamber in the container, which will be closed by the dOOr associated with one of said partitions,

The closed position of the door and the corresponding position of its associated partition zoo-15.1)

are determined by suitable stop means which in the present instance take the form of a rib 2! ailixed to the bottom wall of the container alongside the position which said partition should occupy.

Such a rib will not be necessary at that end of the container adjacent which one of the doors pivots, for the end wall of the container may be relied upon to function as the stopping means for determining the closed position of said door and the corresponding position of the associated partition.

Thus when the doors of the respective units are in their closed position, such units divide the container into a plurality of compartments.

In the floor of each such compartment, we provide an edge slot 23 of L-shape, directed toward that partition which is associated with the door of the compartment in which the particular slot is provided.

Such slots are each adapted to receive a tooth brush 25 or such other item for which the holder may be designed, and in such slot, the brush will be supported by the bottom Wall of the container. In inserting such a brush into a slot, with the door of the particular compartment open, it becomes apparent that the brush will strike the associated partition and cause such partition to swing into engagement with the rib stop, and at the same time swing the door to its closed position. At no time, therefore, is it possible to have two tooth brushes in the holder without a partition separating them, and at all times that a tooth brush is in the holder, the associated door will be closed.

On the other hand, in removing a tooth brush, the brush will engage the closed door and swing it to an open position which at the same time will cause a corresponding movement of the associated partition to a position where it will substantially occupy the closed position of the door. Thus during the absence of the brush from the holder, the opening to its chamber is now substantially closed by what was previously the partition and this tends to keep the interior of the container clean and sanitary.

The entire device is preferably fabricated from material which is transparent. Plastic material such as Lucite, for example, is admirably adapted for this purpose.

Any suitable means (not shown) may be employed to hang th holder on a wall, such means not being a feature of the present invention.

It will be apparent from the above described embodiment of our invention that the sam fulfills all the objects previously recited therefor, and while we have disclosed our invention in its preferred embodiment, it is subject to minor alterations without departing from the underlying principles of the invention, and we, accordingly, do not desire to be limited in our protection to the details of the embodiment illustrated and described, except as may be necessitated by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A holder comprising a container having top and bottom walls; a plurality of door-partition units pivotally secured between said top and bottom walls adjacent the front edges thereof, each such unit including a door and a partition at substantially right angle thereto and adapted in the closed position of said door to occupy the position. of a partition in said container to form compartments with similar adjacent partitions;

said aforementioned bottom wall having a front I and adapted in the closed position of said door to occupy the position of a partition in said container to form compartments with similar adjacent partitions; said aforementioned bottom wall having a front edge slot of L-shape in each such compartment and directed toward the partion associated with the door of such compartment.

3. A holder comprising a container having top, bottom and end walls, and a rear wall extending across the back; and a plurality of door-partition units pivotally secured between said top and bottom walls adjacent the front edges there of, each such unit including a door and a partition at substantially right angles thereto and adapted in the closed position of said door to occupy the position of a partition in said container to form compartments with similar adjacent partitions; said aforementioned bottom wall having a front edge slot of L-shape in each such compartment and directed toward the partition associated with the door of such compartment.

4. A holder comprising a container having top, bottom and end walls, and a rear wall extending across the back; a plurality of door-partition units pivotally secured between said top and bottom walls adjacent the front edges thereof, each such unit including a door and a partition at substantially right angles thereto and adapted in the closed position of said door to occupy the position of a partition in said container to form cmpartments with similar adjacent partitions; said aforementioned bottom wall having a front edge slot of L-shape in each such compartment and directed toward the partition associated with the door of such compartment; and means for determining such closed position of a door-partition unit, said means involving a stop disposed in the path of swing of said unit.

GUIDO J. ROZZI. ERNEST L. BONALANZA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Nimber Name Date 323,733 Potter Aug. 4, 1885 1,289,025 Wever Dec. 24, 1918 1,303,884 Goodnow, Jr May 20, 1919 1,544,694 Speidel July 7, 19,25v 2,165,835 Forrer June 27, 1939 

